Object-oriented operating system
Encyclopedia
An object-oriented operating system is an operating system
which internally uses object-oriented methodologies
.
An object-oriented operating system is in contrast to an object-oriented user interface
or programming framework
, which can be placed above a non-object-oriented operating system like DOS
, Microsoft Windows
or Unix
.
It can be argued, however, that there are already object-oriented concepts involved in the design of a more typical operating system such as Unix
. While a more traditional language like C
does not support object orientation as fluidly as more recent languages, the notion of, for example, a file
, stream, or device driver
(in Unix, each represented as a file descriptor
) can be considered a good example of object orientation: they are, after all, abstract data type
s, with various method
s in the form of system call
s, whose behavior varies based on the type of object, whose implementation details are hidden from the caller, and might even use inheritance
in their underlying code.
was used as an operating system
on some early machines.
aka on the Lisp Machine
and then at Symbolics
with the Genera (operating system)
was invented at Xerox
in the 70's.
The Smalltalk system is fully object oriented and needs very little support by BIOS
and the run-time system
.
The AS400 OS has an 128bit unique identifier for any object.
was an object oriented operating environment that took control of the PC from DOS when loaded on DOS. At that point it effectively became an object oriented operating system with an object oriented API (TopView API). It was IBM's first multi-tasking, window based, object oriented operating system for the PC lead by David C. Morrill and released in February 1985.
IBM OS/2
IBM's first priority based pre-emptive multitasking, graphical, windows based, object oriented operating system for the Intel 80386 which included virtual 8086 mode and full 32 bit support and released in 1992.
formed the computer
company NeXT
. One of NeXT's first tasks was to design an object-oriented operating system, NEXTSTEP
. They did this by adding an object-oriented framework on top of Mach
and BSD using the Objective-C
language as a basis.
NeXTStep later evolved into OpenStep
and the Cocoa (API)
on Mac OS X
.
OpenStep was provided as an API layer atop many operating systems,
namely NextStep, Windows, HP-UX
, Solaris
.
is a light-weighted object-oriented multitasking graphical operating system with sophisticated window and desktop management featuring scalable fonts. It is mostly written in an object-oriented x86 assembly language dialect and some C/C++ and is designed to run on top of DOS
(similar to Microsoft Windows). GEOS was originally developed by Berkeley Softworks in 1990, who later became GeoWorks Corporation, and it is continued to be maintained by BreadBox Computer Company. Software suites were also known as Ensemble and New Deal Office. Adaptations for various palmtops and as 32-bit systems with non-x86-CPUs exist as well.
. It is written in C++
and uses objects to represent core kernel components like the CPU
, process
es and so on. Inheritance
is used to separate the kernel into portable machine independent classes and small non-portable dependent classes. Choices has been ported to and runs on SPARC
, x86
and ARM
.
of the mid 1990s, which used objects and the C++
language for the application programming interface
(API). But the kernel itself was written in C with C++ wrappers in user space. The system did not become mainstream though even today it has its fans and benefits from ongoing development.
, an effort to create an open-source replacement began. Haiku
(originally named OpenBeOS) reached its first milestone in September 2009 with the release of Haiku R1/Alpha 1. The x86 distribution is compatible with BeOS at both source and binary level. Like BeOS, it is written primarily in C++
and provides an object-oriented API. It is actively developed.
makes heavy use of C++
and for that reason is often compared to BeOS
.
' Java
is today one of the most dominant object-oriented languages, it is no surprise that Java-based operating systems have been attempted. In this area, ideally, the kernel would consist of the bare minimum required to support a JVM. This is the only component of such an operating system that would have to be written in a language other than Java. Built upon that JVM and basic hardware support, it would be possible to write the rest of the operating system in Java; even parts of the system that are more traditionally written in a lower-level language such as C, for example device driver
s, can be written in Java.
Examples of attempts at such an operating system include JX
, JNode
and JavaOS
.
is an experimental Operating System based on Microsoft's .NET Framework
. It is comparable to Java-based operating systems, but uses the .NET platform instead of the Java platform.
is an operating system for Lisp Machine
s written in ZetaLisp and Symbolics Common Lisp
. It makes heavy use of Flavors (an early object-oriented extension to Lisp) and the Common Lisp Object System (CLOS). The development started in the mid 70s at MIT.
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
which internally uses object-oriented methodologies
Object-oriented programming
Object-oriented programming is a programming paradigm using "objects" – data structures consisting of data fields and methods together with their interactions – to design applications and computer programs. Programming techniques may include features such as data abstraction,...
.
An object-oriented operating system is in contrast to an object-oriented user interface
User interface
The user interface, in the industrial design field of human–machine interaction, is the space where interaction between humans and machines occurs. The goal of interaction between a human and a machine at the user interface is effective operation and control of the machine, and feedback from the...
or programming framework
Software framework
In computer programming, a software framework is an abstraction in which software providing generic functionality can be selectively changed by user code, thus providing application specific software...
, which can be placed above a non-object-oriented operating system like DOS
DOS
DOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
, Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
or Unix
Unix
Unix is a multitasking, multi-user computer operating system originally developed in 1969 by a group of AT&T employees at Bell Labs, including Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, Brian Kernighan, Douglas McIlroy, and Joe Ossanna...
.
It can be argued, however, that there are already object-oriented concepts involved in the design of a more typical operating system such as Unix
Unix
Unix is a multitasking, multi-user computer operating system originally developed in 1969 by a group of AT&T employees at Bell Labs, including Ken Thompson, Dennis Ritchie, Brian Kernighan, Douglas McIlroy, and Joe Ossanna...
. While a more traditional language like C
C (programming language)
C is a general-purpose computer programming language developed between 1969 and 1973 by Dennis Ritchie at the Bell Telephone Laboratories for use with the Unix operating system....
does not support object orientation as fluidly as more recent languages, the notion of, for example, a file
Computer file
A computer file is a block of arbitrary information, or resource for storing information, which is available to a computer program and is usually based on some kind of durable storage. A file is durable in the sense that it remains available for programs to use after the current program has finished...
, stream, or device driver
Device driver
In computing, a device driver or software driver is a computer program allowing higher-level computer programs to interact with a hardware device....
(in Unix, each represented as a file descriptor
File descriptor
In computer programming, a file descriptor is an abstract indicator for accessing a file. The term is generally used in POSIX operating systems...
) can be considered a good example of object orientation: they are, after all, abstract data type
Abstract data type
In computing, an abstract data type is a mathematical model for a certain class of data structures that have similar behavior; or for certain data types of one or more programming languages that have similar semantics...
s, with various method
Method (computer science)
In object-oriented programming, a method is a subroutine associated with a class. Methods define the behavior to be exhibited by instances of the associated class at program run time...
s in the form of system call
System call
In computing, a system call is how a program requests a service from an operating system's kernel. This may include hardware related services , creating and executing new processes, and communicating with integral kernel services...
s, whose behavior varies based on the type of object, whose implementation details are hidden from the caller, and might even use inheritance
Inheritance (computer science)
In object-oriented programming , inheritance is a way to reuse code of existing objects, establish a subtype from an existing object, or both, depending upon programming language support...
in their underlying code.
LISP
LispLisp
A lisp is a speech impediment, historically also known as sigmatism. Stereotypically, people with a lisp are unable to pronounce sibilants , and replace them with interdentals , though there are actually several kinds of lisp...
was used as an operating system
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
on some early machines.
aka on the Lisp Machine
Lisp machine
Lisp machines were general-purpose computers designed to efficiently run Lisp as their main software language. In a sense, they were the first commercial single-user workstations...
and then at Symbolics
Symbolics
Symbolics refers to two companies: now-defunct computer manufacturer Symbolics, Inc., and a privately held company that acquired the assets of the former company and continues to sell and maintain the Open Genera Lisp system and the Macsyma computer algebra system.The symbolics.com domain was...
with the Genera (operating system)
Smalltalk
SmalltalkSmalltalk
Smalltalk is an object-oriented, dynamically typed, reflective programming language. Smalltalk was created as the language to underpin the "new world" of computing exemplified by "human–computer symbiosis." It was designed and created in part for educational use, more so for constructionist...
was invented at Xerox
Xerox
Xerox Corporation is an American multinational document management corporation that produced and sells a range of color and black-and-white printers, multifunction systems, photo copiers, digital production printing presses, and related consulting services and supplies...
in the 70's.
The Smalltalk system is fully object oriented and needs very little support by BIOS
BIOS
In IBM PC compatible computers, the basic input/output system , also known as the System BIOS or ROM BIOS , is a de facto standard defining a firmware interface....
and the run-time system
Run-time system
A run-time system is a software component designed to support the execution of computer programs written in some computer language...
.
IBM AS400
IBM invented AS400 around 1978The AS400 OS has an 128bit unique identifier for any object.
IBM TopView
TopViewTopView
TopView is a text-mode PC DOS multitasking, object oriented windowing environment written by IBM and introduced in August of 1984 and made available in February of 1985. TopView was announced in order to provide an environment that users could run more than one application at the same time on a PC...
was an object oriented operating environment that took control of the PC from DOS when loaded on DOS. At that point it effectively became an object oriented operating system with an object oriented API (TopView API). It was IBM's first multi-tasking, window based, object oriented operating system for the PC lead by David C. Morrill and released in February 1985.
IBM OS/2OS/2OS/2 is a computer operating system, initially created by Microsoft and IBM, then later developed by IBM exclusively. The name stands for "Operating System/2," because it was introduced as part of the same generation change release as IBM's "Personal System/2 " line of second-generation personal...
2.0
IBM's first priority based pre-emptive multitasking, graphical, windows based, object oriented operating system for the Intel 80386 which included virtual 8086 mode and full 32 bit support and released in 1992.NeXTSTEP
During the late 1980s, Steve JobsSteve Jobs
Steven Paul Jobs was an American businessman and inventor widely recognized as a charismatic pioneer of the personal computer revolution. He was co-founder, chairman, and chief executive officer of Apple Inc...
formed the computer
Computer
A computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
company NeXT
NeXT
Next, Inc. was an American computer company headquartered in Redwood City, California, that developed and manufactured a series of computer workstations intended for the higher education and business markets...
. One of NeXT's first tasks was to design an object-oriented operating system, NEXTSTEP
NEXTSTEP
NeXTSTEP was the object-oriented, multitasking operating system developed by NeXT Computer to run on its range of proprietary workstation computers, such as the NeXTcube...
. They did this by adding an object-oriented framework on top of Mach
Mach (kernel)
Mach is an operating system kernel developed at Carnegie Mellon University to support operating system research, primarily distributed and parallel computation. Although Mach is often mentioned as one of the earliest examples of a microkernel, not all versions of Mach are microkernels...
and BSD using the Objective-C
Objective-C
Objective-C is a reflective, object-oriented programming language that adds Smalltalk-style messaging to the C programming language.Today, it is used primarily on Apple's Mac OS X and iOS: two environments derived from the OpenStep standard, though not compliant with it...
language as a basis.
NeXTStep later evolved into OpenStep
OpenStep
OpenStep was an object-oriented application programming interface specification for an object-oriented operating system that used a non-NeXTSTEP operating system as its core, principally developed by NeXT with Sun Microsystems. OPENSTEP was a specific implementation of the OpenStep API developed...
and the Cocoa (API)
Cocoa (API)
Cocoa is Apple's native object-oriented application programming interface for the Mac OS X operating system and—along with the Cocoa Touch extension for gesture recognition and animation—for applications for the iOS operating system, used on Apple devices such as the iPhone, the iPod Touch, and...
on Mac OS X
Mac OS X
Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems...
.
OpenStep was provided as an API layer atop many operating systems,
namely NextStep, Windows, HP-UX
HP-UX
HP-UX is Hewlett-Packard's proprietary implementation of the Unix operating system, based on UNIX System V and first released in 1984...
, Solaris
Solaris
- Fiction :* Solaris , a 1961 science fiction novel by Stanisław Lem** Solaris , directed by B. Nirenburg** Solaris , directed by Andrei Tarkovsky** Solaris , directed by Steven Soderbergh...
.
GEOS
PC/GEOSGEOS (16-bit operating system)
GEOS is a computer operating environment, graphical user interface, and suite of application software. Originally released as PC/GEOS, it runs on DOS-based, IBM PC compatible computers. The package later became GeoWorks Ensemble, then NewDeal Office, and is now Breadbox Ensemble...
is a light-weighted object-oriented multitasking graphical operating system with sophisticated window and desktop management featuring scalable fonts. It is mostly written in an object-oriented x86 assembly language dialect and some C/C++ and is designed to run on top of DOS
DOS
DOS, short for "Disk Operating System", is an acronym for several closely related operating systems that dominated the IBM PC compatible market between 1981 and 1995, or until about 2000 if one includes the partially DOS-based Microsoft Windows versions 95, 98, and Millennium Edition.Related...
(similar to Microsoft Windows). GEOS was originally developed by Berkeley Softworks in 1990, who later became GeoWorks Corporation, and it is continued to be maintained by BreadBox Computer Company. Software suites were also known as Ensemble and New Deal Office. Adaptations for various palmtops and as 32-bit systems with non-x86-CPUs exist as well.
Choices
Choices is an object-oriented operating system that was developed at the University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignUniversity of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
. It is written in C++
C++
C++ is a statically typed, free-form, multi-paradigm, compiled, general-purpose programming language. It is regarded as an intermediate-level language, as it comprises a combination of both high-level and low-level language features. It was developed by Bjarne Stroustrup starting in 1979 at Bell...
and uses objects to represent core kernel components like the CPU
Central processing unit
The central processing unit is the portion of a computer system that carries out the instructions of a computer program, to perform the basic arithmetical, logical, and input/output operations of the system. The CPU plays a role somewhat analogous to the brain in the computer. The term has been in...
, process
Process (computing)
In computing, a process is an instance of a computer program that is being executed. It contains the program code and its current activity. Depending on the operating system , a process may be made up of multiple threads of execution that execute instructions concurrently.A computer program is a...
es and so on. Inheritance
Inheritance (computer science)
In object-oriented programming , inheritance is a way to reuse code of existing objects, establish a subtype from an existing object, or both, depending upon programming language support...
is used to separate the kernel into portable machine independent classes and small non-portable dependent classes. Choices has been ported to and runs on SPARC
SPARC
SPARC is a RISC instruction set architecture developed by Sun Microsystems and introduced in mid-1987....
, x86
X86 architecture
The term x86 refers to a family of instruction set architectures based on the Intel 8086 CPU. The 8086 was launched in 1978 as a fully 16-bit extension of Intel's 8-bit based 8080 microprocessor and also introduced segmentation to overcome the 16-bit addressing barrier of such designs...
and ARM
ARM architecture
ARM is a 32-bit reduced instruction set computer instruction set architecture developed by ARM Holdings. It was named the Advanced RISC Machine, and before that, the Acorn RISC Machine. The ARM architecture is the most widely used 32-bit ISA in numbers produced...
.
Athene
Athene is an object-based operating system first released in 2000 by Rocklyte Systems. The user environment is constructed entirely from objects that are linked together at runtime. Applications for Athene can also be created using this methodology and are commonly scripted using the object scripting language 'DML' (Dynamic Markup Language). Objects can be shared between processes by creating them in shared memory and locking them as required for access. Athene's object framework is multi-platform, allowing it to be used in Windows and Linux environments for the development of object-oriented programs.BeOS
One attempt at creating a truly object-oriented operating system was the BeOSBeOS
BeOS is an operating system for personal computers which began development by Be Inc. in 1991. It was first written to run on BeBox hardware. BeOS was optimized for digital media work and was written to take advantage of modern hardware facilities such as symmetric multiprocessing by utilizing...
of the mid 1990s, which used objects and the C++
C++
C++ is a statically typed, free-form, multi-paradigm, compiled, general-purpose programming language. It is regarded as an intermediate-level language, as it comprises a combination of both high-level and low-level language features. It was developed by Bjarne Stroustrup starting in 1979 at Bell...
language for the application programming interface
Application programming interface
An application programming interface is a source code based specification intended to be used as an interface by software components to communicate with each other...
(API). But the kernel itself was written in C with C++ wrappers in user space. The system did not become mainstream though even today it has its fans and benefits from ongoing development.
Haiku
After the discontinuation of BeOSBeOS
BeOS is an operating system for personal computers which began development by Be Inc. in 1991. It was first written to run on BeBox hardware. BeOS was optimized for digital media work and was written to take advantage of modern hardware facilities such as symmetric multiprocessing by utilizing...
, an effort to create an open-source replacement began. Haiku
Haiku (operating system)
Haiku is a free and open source operating system compatible with BeOS. Its development began in 2001, and the operating system became self-hosting in 2008, with the first alpha release in September 2009, the second in May 2010 and the third in June 2011....
(originally named OpenBeOS) reached its first milestone in September 2009 with the release of Haiku R1/Alpha 1. The x86 distribution is compatible with BeOS at both source and binary level. Like BeOS, it is written primarily in C++
C++
C++ is a statically typed, free-form, multi-paradigm, compiled, general-purpose programming language. It is regarded as an intermediate-level language, as it comprises a combination of both high-level and low-level language features. It was developed by Bjarne Stroustrup starting in 1979 at Bell...
and provides an object-oriented API. It is actively developed.
Syllable
SyllableSyllable (operating system)
Syllable Desktop is a free and open source operating system for Pentium and compatible processors. Its purpose is to create an easy-to-use desktop operating system for the home and small office user...
makes heavy use of C++
C++
C++ is a statically typed, free-form, multi-paradigm, compiled, general-purpose programming language. It is regarded as an intermediate-level language, as it comprises a combination of both high-level and low-level language features. It was developed by Bjarne Stroustrup starting in 1979 at Bell...
and for that reason is often compared to BeOS
BeOS
BeOS is an operating system for personal computers which began development by Be Inc. in 1991. It was first written to run on BeBox hardware. BeOS was optimized for digital media work and was written to take advantage of modern hardware facilities such as symmetric multiprocessing by utilizing...
.
Java-based operating systems
Given that Sun MicrosystemsSun Microsystems
Sun Microsystems, Inc. was a company that sold :computers, computer components, :computer software, and :information technology services. Sun was founded on February 24, 1982...
' Java
Java (programming language)
Java is a programming language originally developed by James Gosling at Sun Microsystems and released in 1995 as a core component of Sun Microsystems' Java platform. The language derives much of its syntax from C and C++ but has a simpler object model and fewer low-level facilities...
is today one of the most dominant object-oriented languages, it is no surprise that Java-based operating systems have been attempted. In this area, ideally, the kernel would consist of the bare minimum required to support a JVM. This is the only component of such an operating system that would have to be written in a language other than Java. Built upon that JVM and basic hardware support, it would be possible to write the rest of the operating system in Java; even parts of the system that are more traditionally written in a lower-level language such as C, for example device driver
Device driver
In computing, a device driver or software driver is a computer program allowing higher-level computer programs to interact with a hardware device....
s, can be written in Java.
Examples of attempts at such an operating system include JX
JX (operating system)
JX is a microkernel operating system with both the kernel and applications implemented using the Java programming language.- Overview :JX is implemented as an extended Java Virtual Machine , adding support to the Java system for necessary features such as protection domains and hardware access,...
, JNode
JNode
JNode is a free software project to create a Java platform operating system. The project has taken the unique direction of creating all the software in Java itself, with the exception of some assembly language to boot and load the system...
and JavaOS
JavaOS
JavaOS is an operating system with a Java virtual machine as a fundamental component. It was jointly developed by Sun Microsystems and IBM. Unlike Windows, Mac OS, Unix or Unix-like systems which are primarily written in the C programming language, JavaOS is primarily written in Java.As of 2006,...
.
Microsoft Singularity
SingularitySingularity (operating system)
Singularity is an experimental operating system being built by Microsoft Research since 2003. It is intended as a highly-dependable OS in which the kernel, device drivers, and applications are all written in managed code.- Workings :...
is an experimental Operating System based on Microsoft's .NET Framework
.NET Framework
The .NET Framework is a software framework that runs primarily on Microsoft Windows. It includes a large library and supports several programming languages which allows language interoperability...
. It is comparable to Java-based operating systems, but uses the .NET platform instead of the Java platform.
Symbolics Genera
Genera from SymbolicsSymbolics
Symbolics refers to two companies: now-defunct computer manufacturer Symbolics, Inc., and a privately held company that acquired the assets of the former company and continues to sell and maintain the Open Genera Lisp system and the Macsyma computer algebra system.The symbolics.com domain was...
is an operating system for Lisp Machine
Lisp machine
Lisp machines were general-purpose computers designed to efficiently run Lisp as their main software language. In a sense, they were the first commercial single-user workstations...
s written in ZetaLisp and Symbolics Common Lisp
Common Lisp
Common Lisp, commonly abbreviated CL, is a dialect of the Lisp programming language, published in ANSI standard document ANSI INCITS 226-1994 , . From the ANSI Common Lisp standard the Common Lisp HyperSpec has been derived for use with web browsers...
. It makes heavy use of Flavors (an early object-oriented extension to Lisp) and the Common Lisp Object System (CLOS). The development started in the mid 70s at MIT.